Cagewriter

Before every fight, the fighters face off as part of the pre-fight weigh-ins. Usually, the two fighters raise their fists and scowl at each other as pictures are snapped. But sometimes, a fighter smiles at his or her opponent. A study published in the scientific journal "Emotion" claims that smiling isn't such a good plan. A smiling fighter is more likely to lose.

The researchers did two studies as part of an overall look at how smiles affected fights. Their findings:

We reason, on the basis of prior research, that prior to a physical confrontation, smiles are a nonverbal sign of reduced hostility and aggression, and thereby unintentionally communicate reduced physical dominance. Two studies provide evidence in support of this prediction: Study 1 found that professional fighters who smiled more in a prefight photograph taken facing their opponent performed more poorly during the fight in relation to their less intensely smiling counterparts. In Study 2, untrained observers judged a fighter as less hostile and aggressive, and thereby less physically dominant when the fighters' facial expression was manipulated to show a smiling expression in relation to the same fighter displaying a neutral expression.

Taking a look at UFC weigh-ins in 2013, not many fighters smiled at their opponents. But of the ones who did, their record wasn't good. In the top picture, John Dodson smiled at Demetrious Johnson, and lost in a five-round decision.

(Getty)Junior dos Santos was supposed to face Alistair Overeem at UFC 160, but an injury forced Overeem out of the bout. Now, dos Santos will fight Mark Hunt. JDS talked to a Brazilian radio station, and said he admired one of those opponents but found the other to be a joke.

"I think it was great the UFC have scheduled Mark Hunt. I admire him very much for having accepted because he just fought. I admire and appreciate because I want to fight May 25 and this will happen thanks to him. When Overeem jumped off I thought it was great that the UFC came by with another opponent. [Overeem] isn’t a champion, he’s nothing. If he was a champion, I would wait."

So JDS is a fan of Hunt, and doesn't think it's worth waiting for a bout with Overeem. But how does he feel about Overeem?

"I think [Overeem] is a joke. He is very big, he's on steroids and he talks a lot of [expletive]. But I don't care about him. He can go on with his career and do what he thinks is the best for him, I will do the same. If some day we face each other and he runs out of problems, we fight."

Overeem and dos Santos were set to fight last May, when dos Santos still held the UFC heavyweight championship belt. The fight was canceled when Overeem failed a PED test. He was found to have excessive levels of testosterone, more than double of that the athletic commission in Nevada allowed.

Overeem was suspended, and then lost to Antonio Silva on his return to the cage. With dos Santos fresh off losing his belt to Cain Velasquez, it seemed like a perfect opportunity for the two rivals to square off.

At Galaxy Fight Night IV, an amateur MMA event in northern California, Brandon Alexander and Aaron Britt treated the fans to the rare MMA treat of a fast double-knockout. As the video above shows, the fighter introductions last longer than the fight itself. Seconds after squaring off, they both threw the same hook that landed on each other's button. Then, in a mirror image, both fighters fell to the ground. They both got back up.

These results are more likely in the amateur ranks as fighters are still learning how to defend themselves while throwing punches. You can bet that both Alexander

(Getty)Rashad Evans, the one-time UFC light heavyweight champion, made his position on same-sex marriage clear. He's for it, because equality in the world makes it better for everyone.

When asked by Outsports of his thoughts on the issue, Evans issued this incredibly smart, well-thought-out response. His statement in full:

“I've never been a homophobe, never understood what that is all about. I knew some people who were gay and never cared about their sexuality. But at the same time, I didn't fully understand the issues around gay people until my friend BA started telling me about his full public support for gay marriage. We talked about the issue and I decided its not enough to not be against a minority, if you want things to go better for them you have to speak up with them.

“I'm a UFC fighter, a macho-type sport. I am a heterosexual guy in a tough macho sport, which is exactly the reason I feel a duty to say I support gay marriage and gay rights.

“I have nothing to gain personally from supporting this issue, and that's the point. Society as a whole is better when there is equality, and I want to live in a country where everyone has the same rights because we all benefit from that.

My Fox LA invited former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson onset with UFC women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey, and it was basically like having Confucius on-set. Both fighters dropped wisdom bombs throughout their interview. A few samples:

Stick with your moms and a good lawyer. That's all you need. Your mother and a good lawyer. -- Tyson

If it's a pain situation, that's something you can ignore. -- Rousey

Spirit makes you a better fighter, not drugs. -- Tyson

I always try to win in a way they the opponent never wants to fight me again. -- Rousey

-- Remember that Mark Hunt — Junior dos Santos bout that UFC president Dana White said isn't happening? Now it is. MMA Fighting reports the two will meet at UFC 160 in May. Dos Santos was supposed to fight Alistair Overeem on that weekend, but an injury took Overeem out of the bout.

This will be dos Santos' first fight since losing the UFC heavyweight belt to Cain Velasquez. Hunt is currently riding a four-fight

(Getty)Though it's a slow week for MMA fights, it's not for MMA news. Check out who made Cagewriter's Hot and Not list;

Hot — Georges St-Pierre: After listening to Nick Diaz, his opponent at UFC 158, talk about how pampered GSP is, the welterweight champion went off. His heat comes from the steam he let off when ripping Diaz on a press conference call.

Not — Alistair Overeem: He was set for a grudge match bout with former UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos, but injury knocked him out of their late May bout. Now he will have to wait until later this summer to fight.

Hot — Jon Fitch: Two weeks ago, he was given the pink slip by the UFC and was pre-emptively turned down by Bellator. This week, he was signed by the World Series of Fighting and is likely to have a bout in June on NBC Sports Network.

Hot — Chris Weidman: After patiently waiting for months through an injury and Hurricane Sandy, the undefeated New Jersey native is finally getting his shot at Anderson Silva and the middleweight belt. He will fight Silva at UFC 162 this summer.

Not — Mark Hunt: After Overeem was injured, Hunt said on Twitter that he wanted the fight with dos Santos. After UFC president Dana White said Hunt turned down the bout, Hunt took to Twitter to say that he doesn't turn fights down. No matter who is telling the truth, Hunt won't be riding his winning streak into a top-level fight.

Still taking temperature — Fallon Fox: The first openly transgender fighter's license is under review as the commission in Florida reviews her medical records. Fox is post-operative and has lived as a woman since 2006.

Who is hot or not in MMA to you? Speak up in the comments, on Facebook or on Twitter.

(Getty)When Chael Sonnen and Anderson Silva were promoting their fight last year, there was a conference call when Silva stopped being the nice guy. After listening to Sonnen rip Silva and talk about how he was going to win for months, Silva snapped. As he had not done previously, Silva talked about the many ways he was going to beat up Sonnen.

"I work hard regardless, through this [expletive], but I don’t have people toweling me off and handing me water bottles left and right, and getting my training paid for me," Diaz said. "I’ve got to do all that [expletive] on my own, and every day I know it, and that’s why I know I have to go that much harder, and concentrate, and do that much more, because I don’t have people taking care of my money or financial tax obligations, or what have you … I’m too busy fighting all your fights, I’m too busy entertaining all the fans.”

Like Diaz, GSP started from humble beginnings. He's been fighting since 2002, and has lost just twice. GSP is usually pretty bland in his pre-fight interviews, but balked at the idea he was handed his success.

(Getty)So, so, so many fights were announced in the past 24 hours. Here's a breakdown of what you will be seeing in coming months.

-- As you've seen from the front of Yahoo! Sports MMA, middleweight champion Anderson Silva's title bout with Chris Weidman at UFC 162 has been confirmed. It's Silva's second straight Fourth of July weekend card appearance. He won by TKO over Chael Sonnen last summer. Will he do the same against Weidman?

-- An injury to Alistair Overeem has forced his bout with Junior dos Santos off of UFC 160. The fight will likely take place later this summer.

-- In June, the UFC will head to Winnipeg for the first time for UFC 161. The card will be headlined with an interim bantamweight title belt bout between Renan Barao and Eddie Wineland. Also on that card, Rashad Evans will fight Dan Henderson, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira will fight Mauricio Rua, and Jake Shields will fight Tyron Woodley in a battle of Strikeforce vets.

-- Two bouts were also added to UFC on Fox 7 in April in San Jose. Flyweight Joseph Benavidez will fight Darren Uyenoyama, and Francisco Rivera will fight Hugo Viana in a bantamweight bout.

Want to get an early start on making picks? Take a chance in the comments, on Facebook or on Twitter.

When Liz Carmouche fought Ronda Rousey at UFC 157, she became the first openly gay UFC fighter. The sport is breaking new ground again with transgender female fighter Fallon Fox. As a postoperative transgender woman since 2006, Fox has two professional wins under her belt. But her license is now under review in Florida, where she knocked out Ericka Newsome in a Championship Fighting Alliance tournament bout.

Fox revealed her original gender to Sports Illustrated on Monday. She said when she applied for a license in Florida, that she already held a license in California. Once a fighter is licensed in one state, it's usually easier to get licensed in another. Fox thought she was licensed in California, but the California State Athletic Commission said her license application was under review. Though she says she disclosed her transgender history to California, she didn't to Florida.

The crux of the question behind her license is whether or not Fox's former gender would give her an advantage over opponents. Fox says it won't.